Shock absorber for vehicles



Oct. 20, 1931. GROSSO 1,828,602

SHOCK ABSORBER FOR VEHICLES Filed Oct. 12, 1928 4 Sheets-Sheet l 3nventor Jan /'e Grassttorneg Oct. 20, 1931. D. GROSSO SHOCK ABSORBER FOR VEHICLES Filed Oct. 121, 1928 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 awwm boc Jaw/ Grossa D. GROSSO Oct. 20, 1931.

SHOCK ABSORBER FOR VEHICLES Filed Oct. 12, 1928 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 D. GROSSO SHOCK ABSORBER FOR VEHICLES 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Oct.

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Zhwcutor (Ittorneg 1 nniv'rn Gnossq onsnqmnno M oon, BIEL A, nrALY,-Assm1\ion iro or'rroINE i/inof y; GANIGHE rnnrnu'rfenossoa TRIBOLALSAGLIANO MICGA, BIELLA, ITALY Patented OctJZO, 1931 snocx AnsonBEn ron vnnionns Q t j if Application filed October is, 1923, Serial No. 312,079, an' i'in Italy October- 13, 1927'. I 7

Mydnvention; relates 'to shock absorbers for vehicles, particularly for, automobiles, and has for its main objectto provide a triotion shock absorber of I a generally improved character; the same being 'ofa novel and simple design and of -:a sturdy 1 construction insuring its durability, and 'being'-adapted to vide means of a[novel'and'iinproved char? acter for connecting the shock absorber to the part of the vehicle actuating the same.

-' A primary feature of my invention is that the shock'absorptiouis effectedby reason of the transversal or circumferential friction or both arising between a member fixed to one part of the vehicle-and anothersmember connected to another-part thereof,-said' parts being vertically movable in respect to 1 each other the shocks to which one of said parts maybe subjected being absorbed by the shock absorber for the purpose ofpreventing their being-transmitted to the other part. tGen-.

erally one of said parts is the vehicle frame,

while the other axles.

i, A shock absorber made according to this invention, comprises a box-preferably fixed to the vehicle frame, said box enclosing a peripheral band of arelatively soft and rough -faced material, such as 'rubber,:fibre, compressed inohainbelt, or thewlike; said band preferably consisting of an outer'part of rubber. or other material providing the necessary cushioning effect and an innenline ing providing the required frictional I surface said lining being made out oil-canvas, belting or felt orother material to a certain extent yielding, having a relatively high e efficient of friction. The device also" compart is. one of the Vehicle prises anuniber of metal shoes slidably con- 7 tacting fwith theirgouter' faces against said band, or, inthe preferred form, against its lining, :and a central hubl or core. retaining in- .posit on said shoesand-carry mgan operatr-ing lever preferably formed with a number of faces corresponding 'to the 'numberof shoes; said faces being shaped so as to enable the hub to undergo s'mall angular displacements in 'both directions with respect tothe' shoes. The general cross se ction of thehub andparticularly the shape of the peripheral faces thereohis such that=under certain op-x H erative conditions the hub will be capable of causing the shoes to-ifollow its an'gul'ar displacements and circumferentially j,slide against the peripheral band or lining, While under other. operative conditions the hub will braking action Which Willv stop-the vibrations ofthe vehicle frame "with'rspect: tothe ve- This efiect is damn leemicay bra peripheral faces of the'hub, as beiexf" plained.

' According eral faces, the shoes having: plane inner ita'ce's. According 'to vanother embodiment, I a hub comprises plane peripheral: 'faces, hile the shoes have convex inner faces;

I tooneiembodimentof Y vention,v the hub comprises conveX :periph- I I A Thecurvature of he cylindrical rfaces', of

' According to another embodiment otjthe inventionythe peripheral portions ofvthe 7 shoes; are V-shaped, "or truncated-cone.-

sh'aped, or 'conoidical, so that the cross sec;

tion of a shoe will bein theiform of a dgethe peripheral band being correspondingly I shaped,and being preferably fo rmed by-tvvo juxtaposed'sections; and the shoes, under the'action of the hub, will act as Wedges to; an axial extension-of the hub, lisball headed at the opposite end',zfor1ning a partof a V ball socket joint carried byjarrigid connectingrodiattached to thechassis or like member of thevehicle; r In the; preferred embodiment of my in: vention, howeventheconnect-ion between the oscillating hub lever and the vehicle member referredto isprovided byarod resilient per se,said rod being connected'ia't'one efndto the members EAccOr'dingto oneE-embodimenfi the:

lever and attheopposite-end'to the vehicle either the-hub or'the shoes, may ibe symmetri 1 cal but need notlnecessarily be so. r

nected to each other by metallic connecting rods, said rods being suitably secured to said heads. 7 r

In the annexed drawings Fig. 1 is a front elevation of a shock ab sorber embodying my invention, with certain parts broken away to show the interior;

Fig. 2 is adiametral cross section thereof through line 2+2 of Fig. 1 i Figs. 3 and 4 are partial side elevations of alternative embodiments of my invention; Fig. 5 is a diagram illustratingtheaction ofadeviceembodying my invention;

- r F ig. 6 has a front elevation partly sectioned ofanother'device embodying my inventionin a modified. form, with the cover removedto show'the interior;

- Fig. 7. is a Ldiametral cross section thereof through line;7' 7. of: Fig. 6; V i Fig. '8 is a fragmentary side elevation partly, sectioned of a device embodying my invention illustrating an improved non-rigid connection? whichrmay beused to actuate the same;

Fig. 9 is a plan View of the same; .Fig; 10 is a side'felevation thereof; and, Fig. =11 isa detailed fragmentary view of an alternativeconstruction of connected rod.

I Referring first to Figs. 1 and'2,"1 is a cyl indri'cal box which maybe fixed by any suitable .means, such as boltsQ, to the vehicle frame, and is provided :-with a cover 8. Within said box,close to its inner-wall is inserted a peripheral band, 4, made of elastic material such as rubber for instance, said bandhaving a rough inner surface or else be mg used 1ncon unct1on with a lining such as 1-2 made of to a certain extent yielding material, such as canvas, felt or the like, having asurface the coefficient .of friction of which is relatively high.

-The inner surface of the band or of the hning-lssmooth enough'to permit the shoes 5 to slide against the same when thehub is angularly displaced at relatively low speed causing said shoe to follow said hub.

H The peripheral facesof the hub 6normally abut against the corresponding faces of'the shoes 5. In each setof faces thus in'contact, oneor'face hasasuitable fconvexity while the other is plane. Thus, in the drawings it is seen that the peripheral-faces of the hub 6 haveasuitable convexity,which-for the sake of clarity is 1 magnified in the drawings, said faces. normally abutting f against the correspond ng inner faces of. thesho'es 5, so that at rest, the convexity beingrelativelysmall,

I the respectivefaeeswill practically adhere to each other over practically their entire surface. A lever 9 is secured onto an axial extension 6a of hub 6 by means of a bolt 8.

Under these conditions, a comparatively slow and progressive partial rotation of the hub, which is positively operated by the lever 9, will cause the shoes tofollow and slide in This normally happens in connection with all oscillations or vibrations of the-axle'which are due to normal irregularities of the road. However, when a vehicle wheel and the axle thereof receive a sudden andpowerful shock, the hub is suddenly forced to make a movement ofipartial rotation, which the shoes cannot follow because of their friction against the peripheral band' or lining;v as a result, they will be forced outwardly in a radial direction and pressedv against the latter, thus providing an. efheientbraking action and stopping, or absorbing the' vibration of the axle and wheel. i In the constructions shown the faces of the hub have symmetrical convexities, and they will therefore brake in either direction in the. same ratio. .However, the outline of each facemay be altered tosuitspecial conditions if desired, as will be understood.

The action duetovthe eccentricity of the hub faces relative, to its axis of rotation,-is diagrammatically shownin Fig. 5. r I

WVhen the convex face of'hub 6, subsequent to a sudden angular. displacement thereofin the-direction-of the arrow F about pivot 7, reachesthe position 6? its point of contact with the shoe becomes displaced laterally ofits central line, said new pointof contact being at a'distance from the center of rotation of the'hub, greater 'Whenthe dispressible band, I may instead provide shoes made of resilient material and a metalband, without departing from the scope of the invention; a 1

InFigs. 6. and 71 have shown a modified arrangement to increase the contacting surfaces of the movable parts,thereby improving the braking action of the absorber;

. In the same the box is formed by two halves 1",, 3", which are connected together by bolts 10 or the like. The shoes 5" are wedge- V the ball member or, any likevpart becoming.- p w s to overcome the frlctlonal resistance between said surface and the surface of 7 said -shoe' i in? shaped, and cooperatethroughtheir opposite faces 5A and 513 with the inner faces of linings 12A,- 12B insertedover a palr ofjcom- I bandsta-nd give rise-to some axial component of the brakingaaction ofv theiabsorberr In- Figs. 8, 9 and 10 I haveshown a lore ferred arrangement of means ;for-I connect ingthe oscillating lever-to the correspond- 5 'ing. part of the vehicle. Itlhasbeen found that, owing to the very small, amplitude, the

. frequency and the considerableforce' ofthe oscillations due to shocks, anyrlgid connec tion such as those heretofore used andthat z'partially shown as a ball socketjoint' atthe free end of thelever 9 in Figs.1'and 2, are usually subjected to a very considerable wear,

easily flattened or deformed so that the device eventually becomes unsatisfactory and V the/connectionnoisy'. V i By virtue-of said arrangement, the-coir 'nection between the'woscillato-ry' lever and; 1 the corresponding portion of the vehicle is made by means of a rod'elastic initself, which is rigidly connected at its; ends-topthe lever and vehicle, respectively. .1 Any suitable elastic structure may be'used.

In practice, I prefer toprovide a-composite I construction, consisting of two or more hard rubber blocks, connected 'ito eachjothenby means of an intermediate member which also is preferablyjelastic to a c'e rtaing extentor otherwise connectedto;the'attachingameans e v H v outwardly movable in relation to" said pivotally} mounted. .member, towards "said "frietional'tsurface, when thetangentialforce exertedby'said eccentric surface is sufficient, to overcome the frictional=resistance between ctr-the device. 7, As shown in Figs.

terminates with a collar made intwosections 11 and l2-connectedtogether by bolts I3 and engaging an annular groove 14 of a rubber.

A like collar 16,17 encircles another rubber block 18, and intermediate-ofthe-blocks 15 and'18 a rubber cylinder 19:is" provided, reinforced. by rings20near its ends,:the connection of the-blocks 15 and 18 with-th'ecylinder 19 being provided by f rods 21:;the. ends of which are preferably threaded and penetrate said blocks 1 The intermediatev portions 522 of the helically threadedfrods 21- are prefer ably polygonal in section',fso that they may 7 easily be'engaged by a wrench whenzadjustmentor repair of-{the composite rod is re-- quired.; Fig-ell show-s'i an alternative con:

struction of connecting rod ,-in""wh-ich' a plurality of annular] grooves has 1 b en b ti;

I tuted forthe, continuous'-thread of rods 21.

.DQVICGS. embodying my invention .may be i constructed differently; from those; shown I claimz,

s, 9 515a a;arises;-

as bein "intendedfornillustrative purposes only and not in a limiting-sense." I accordingly rese'rvethe nght tocarry invention into progress in all thoseways and manners which may enter fairly in the scope of appointed claims. a 1

In a device of the class 'desci'ibedz the mounted concentrically ofdsaid" e g 7 surface, and a floating shoe member inter- PQI B'd' between said eccentric'surfacetand said 'frictlonal surface, said shoev member being frictionall'y ei'igaged by said eccentric sur face and being adapted to,: .followitsangular V displacements in both directions; and normally having a limited portion'of its :surface outwardly movable-in relationto-said pivotallyirmounted member,fl.towards said frictionallsurface,*when thetangential force exertedbyasaid eccentric surfacetis sufiicient member.

2.;In adevice of the -sclass -zdescribed, a 1

nember'having a'reac'tion surface and a cir.- =cumferent1al frictional surface, abodyo-f re silient 'l-mater-ia'l interposed therebetweeng a memberipro vided with aneccentricsurface pivotally mounted concentrically of said v v frictionalsurface, and; a fioating 'shoefm ember interposed betweensaid eccentric surface and said frictional surface-"said sh'oe mem- V I i i berjnormally having a limited portion'bf its surface frictionallyengagedby saideccentric surfaceand'being adapted to followitsangU- 7 flat displacements in 'bothdirections, and" be-3:

member; I

combination -with a casing carrying a cir- V cumferential inner frlctional surface, ot a hub rotatablymounted concentrically of said surface, said *h-ub being. provided with cam act ng peripheral surfaces, and floating shoe members normally having a limited portion of theirinner'surface:frictionally engaged by; 7

said cam-acting surfaces, said shoe members being interposed between said cam-acting" surfaces and'saiidfrictional surface:and-be in-g outwardlymovablebin relation toasaid f hubs.

' 14. 111a1'deviceflofithe'class described the combination, with a easinghaving areactiorif surface,jo;f a hub rotatably' niounted mien:

tionto; said surface,jsaid hub being; proyided 3 with cam-acting peripheral v surfaces, floating shoemei'nbersnormally having a liinitedpor f V p tionfof their inner surfaces frictionally en'- gaged by said cam-acting surfaces, interposed betweensaid cam-actingsurfaccs and said reaction surface, and a resilient body, having a frictional surface concentric to the axis of said hub, interposed between'said shoes and said reaction surface, said shoe members being outwardly movable in a radial direction in relation to said hub.

5. In a device of the class described the combinatiom'with a casing having a reaction surface, of a hub rotatablymounted in relation to said surface, saidhub being'provided with cam-acting peripheral surfaces, floating shoe members normally having a limited portion of theirinner surfaces frictionally'engagedbysaid cam-acting surfaces, interposed between said cam-acting surfaces and said reaction surface, a resilient body having its inner surface'concentric to the axis of said hub interposed' between said shoes and saidreaction surface, audalining for said concentric surfac'e, providing a substantially uniform surface having'arelatively high coe efficient of friction,'said shoe members being outwardly movable m a radial directlon in relation to said hub. ;;6. In a device of the class described the 1 hub rotatably mounted concentrically of said surface, said hub'being'provided with camact'ing peripheral curved eccentric surfaces, and floating shoe members interposed b'etween said cam-acting surfaces and said frictional surface, said shoe members each having a plane inner surface frictionally engaged by one of said cam-acting surfaces, and being outwardly movable'in relation to said'hub.

'8. Ina device of the class described the combination, with a casing having areaction surface, of a hub rotatably mounted in rela tionzto said surface, said hub being providedwith cam-acting peripheral surfaces, floating shoe members interposedbetween said camac'ting surfaces and saidv reaction surface, said shoe members having their inner sur falces frictionally engaged by said cam-act ing surfaces, each set of contactingdsurfaces comprising acurved'surface anda plane surface, said shoe-tmembers being outwardly movable inirelat-ion to said hub and, having their outer surfaces concentric tolytllej axis thereof, and resilient body, having a frictional surface concentric to the axis'of said hub, directly; opposite theouter surfaces of said shoes, -interposed between said shoe members and said reaction surface. s

9. In adevice of the class described the combination, with a casing hav ing a reaction surface, of a hub'rotatably mountedin relation to said surface, said hub being provided with cam-acting peripheral surfaces, floating shoe members interposed between said camacting surfaces and said reaction surface, said shoe members having their inner sur: faces fric'tionally engaged by said cam-acttion to said surface, said hub being provided with cam-acting peripheral surfaces, floating shoe members interposed between said cam} acting surfaces and said reaction surface, said shoe members "having their inner surfaces 'friction'a-lly engaged by said cam-act;

ing surfaces, each s'etof contacting surfaces comprising a curved surface and a plane sur face, said shoemembers being outwardly movable inrelation to said hub andhaving their outer"surface s concentric to the axis thereofya resilient body, having its inner surface concentric to the axis of said hub,

interposed between said shoes and said reaction surface, anda lining for said inner surf face, having a substantially uniform surface with a relatively high coeflicient of friction, directly oppositethe outer surfaces ofsai'd shoe members. 4

11.' In a device of the class described the combinatiomwitha casing having a reaction surface, of a hub rotatably mounted in relation to said surface, said hub being provided with cam-acting peripheral surfaces, floating shoe members interposed between said cam-actingsurfaces 'and said reaction surface, said shoe members having their inner surfaces frictionally engaged by said camacting surfaces, each set of contacting surfaces comprising-a curved surface and a plane surface, said shoemembers being outwardly movablein'relation to said hub and having inclined outer surfaces concentric to the axis thereof, a resilient body, having frusto conical inner surfaces concentric'to the aXisofsaid hub, parallel to the outer surfaces of'saidshoe members, and a liningfor said -1I1I16II surfaces, 'havmg a substantially ing surfaces, each set of contacting surfaces 1 9 uniform surface with a relatively high coefficient of friction, directly opposite the said outer surfaces. 7

121A device of-the class described, comd prising a casing adapted to be attached toa part of a motor car, a hub provided with a. plurality of cam-acting peripheral surfaces rotatably mounted in said casing, floating shoe members frictionally engaged by said cam-acting surfaces and outwardly movable in a radial direction in relation to said hub, mounted within said casing, said shoe members having'outer surfaces concentric to the axis of said hub, a resilient body, having a frictional surface concentric to the axis of said hub, directlyopposit'e the outer surfaces of said shoe members, and alever associated with said hub adapted to be connected at its free end to another part of said motor car movable in relation to the part to which the casing is attached.

In testimony whereof I set my hand to this specification. i

DANTE GRosso, M 

